Representation of Foreign Countries in the Curriculum of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Case Study: Social Studies in Secondary Education)

Objective: School textbooks consistently reflect political orientations aligned with the dominant political-social system. This is because one of the fundamental missions of the educational system, and more specifically the curriculum, is political socialization. Accordingly, a significant portion of textbook content, either explicitly through formal curriculum objectives or implicitly through hidden curriculum elements, conveys the ideological orientations of political systems. One manifestation of political socialization is the portrayal of foreign governments in school textbooks. Based on this premise, the present study was conducted with the aim of examining the representation of foreign countries in the social studies curriculum of secondary education in the Islamic Republic of Iran. Therefore, the study seeks to answer the central question: ‘What image of foreign countries is presented in secondary-level social studies textbooks in the Islamic Republic of Iran?’Method: The study employed a mixed-method content analysis approach (quantitative and qualitative). The statistical population consisted of social studies textbooks for lower secondary education during the ۲۰۲۴–۲۰۲۵ academic year (۱۴۰۳–۱۴۰۴ in the Iranian calendar), and the entire population was selected as the sample. Data were collected using a researcher-developed checklist. The content validity of the indicators was confirmed through the Lawshe Content Validity Ratio (CVR) based on expert evaluations. Data reliability was established with an inter-rater agreement coefficient of ۹۸%. Data analysis was conducted using frequency tables, percentages, and the chi-square test in the quantitative section, and thematic analysis in the qualitative section.Findings: The findings showed that there were a total of ۵۴۰ references to indicators related to the representation of the outside world. Among these, the highest frequencies belonged to the indicators of "Identification of Enemies" with a frequency of ۲۴۵ (۴۵.۳۷%), and "Introducing colonialism and imperialism and emphasizing the necessity of combating them" with a frequency of ۱۶۳ (۳۰.۱۸%). These were followed by the indicators of the "Necessity of unity among Muslim nation-states," "Familiarization with allied/neighboring countries," and "Rejection of domination/rejection of subordination and independence in foreign policy neither (Neither East nor West)," with frequencies of ۴۵ (۸.۳۳%), ۴۰ (۷.۴%), and ۳۷ (۶.۸۵%), respectively. The indicator "Support for the oppressed, liberation movements, and defense of Muslims’ rights" had the lowest frequency, at ۱۰ (۱.۸۵%).Conclusion: Analysis of the textbooks indicates that within the curriculum of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the identity and image presented of different countries are largely shaped by the prevailing ideology. In addition to introducing students to various countries, the curriculum appears to represent national identities in accordance with the existing political paradigm and the relationship between Iran’s political system and other political systems

کلیدواژه ها:

Conceptualization ، Metaphor. Positive/ Negative Death ، Iranian Media Eyn al-Asad